FIRST OFF . . .

American composer, author and conductor Steven Stucky is expected to be named the new composer-in-residence at the Los Angeles Philharmonic at press conferences to be held in New York and Los Angeles today. Stucky, 38, will serve in that position for a two-year period and be assisted by another composer, Rand Steiger, who was named Composer Fellow to the orchestra last fall. The main job of the composer-in-residence is to serve as an advocate for new music in the community. Commenting on his appointment, the Kansas-born Stucky praised the Philharmonic’s dedication to new works: “The commitment to new music starts right at the top of the organization with Andre Previn, a composer himself, and with Ernest Fleischmann (the orchestra’s executive director), who has a crusader’s passion for new music that is unique among orchestra administrators.”